Israeli forces temporarily hold Fatah official at checkpoint, detain her son

JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained a Fatah Revolutionary Council member and her son on Sunday afternoon, eventually releasing the politician hours later.

Salwa Hdeib told Ma’an that she and her 23-year-old son Ahed Ahmad Qanam got into an argument with Israeli soldiers over the closure of the Hizma checkpoint in the central occupied West Bank district of Jerusalem on Sunday afternoon.

Hdeib added that they were then detained at the checkpoint from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. before being transferred to an Israeli police station in the illegal Atarot Industrial Area settlement, where they were interrogated.

The Fatah official was finally released after three hours of interrogation, while Qanam, her son, saw his detention extended.

Both Israeli army and police spokespeople told Ma’an that they did not have immediate information on the case.

Palestinian political figures, activists, and journalists are also regularly targeted by Israeli forces. According to prisoners’ rights group Addameer, 6,500 Palestinians, including four Palestinian Legislative Council members, were held by Israel as of January.